Community

Immigration ban ‘will put lives at risk and lead to care company closures in Wales’

Published

1 month ago

May 18, 2025

CARE HOMES will close and lives will be put at risk in Wales as a result of the “half-baked” immigration crackdown on social care workers.

That’s the warning from sector champions Care Forum Wales (CFW) who say the plan to end the recruitment of care staff from overseas will have a devastating impact on care homes and domiciliary care companies – with catastrophic consequences for the NHS.

The announcement by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper came at a time when the sector was already reeling from increases in National Insurance contributions and wage rises, which amount to a 37 per cent hike in costs.

CFW raised the issue as a matter of urgency at a meeting a meeting of the Five Nations group, which represents social care providers in Wales, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Eire, where the condemnation was unanimous.

Both organisations are writing to Prime Minister Kier Starmer and the Home Secretary urging them to reverse the overseas recruitment ban for social care.

Mario Kreft MBE, the chair of CFW, said: “It really is a half-baked, ill-thought through idea that’s ignored commonsense for the sake of short-term political expediency.

“Calling these social care heroes low skilled is an affront. It’s shocking because we’re talking about some very special people who are highly skilled at caring.

“To treat them with such disdain as the Home Secretary has done is an absolute disgrace.

“We live in ageist society where older, vulnerable people are not valued.

“As a result, these social care workers are at the wrong end of the salary scale because of the model that local authorities and health boards apply to commissioning publicly funded social care services.

“It’s particularly damaging here in Wales because most people who need social care – whether it’s in a care home or in their own homes – are publicly funded.

“If you lose 10 per cent of your workforce it’s going to cause major issue because you need so many people.

“Most council jobs are 9 ‘til 5 but social care doesn’t work like that – it’s 24/7, 365 days a year.

“This will inevitably lead to care homes closing and domiciliary care companies going to the wall.

“If you have problems in terms of quality because you haven’t enough staff, you’ll get closed down anyway by the regulator.

“At the very least, domiciliary care and care homes will have to reduce services which will cause a backlog into the NHS.

“It is so counterintuitive. At a time when you’re hitting businesses with a 37 per cent increase in National Insurance to raise £20 billion for the NHS, the UK Government is harming the social care sector that keeps the NHS going. They are shooting themselves in the foot. It defies logic.

“All of the work we have done over the past 20 to 30 years to professionalise the sector, working in partnership with the Welsh Government and Social Care Wales, they have put a match to it overnight.

“If we were able to recruit sufficient staff locally we would. We certainly wouldn’t go to the extra expense of recruiting international workers. It can cost £10,000 per person.

“All of this is politically driven. It’s certainly not driven by reality. This is knee-jerk politics of the worst kind in an effort to confront a right-wing agenda.

“Things are bad enough now but even more people won’t be able to get into hospital when they need to and down the line it’s something that could cost lives.”

CFW treasurer Sanjiv Joshi was equally shocked and said: “International recruitment of care workers has been a lifeline for our sector and the NHS as well.

“As we’ve realised since the pandemic, the NHS and the social care sector are totally intertwined and the backbone of both these very vital services are the care workers and we have a very small pool to recruit from in Wales.

“It is absolutely essential that we are able to supplement our domestic workforce with international recruitment.

“It’s ironic that the country has just made huge financial sacrifices with higher taxation to try and improve the NHS and the social care offering and this is going to do the opposite.

“The Government’s claim that not enough is being done to recruit workers from this country is just a false narrative.

“International recruitment has been going on in the social care sector and the NHS for the last 25 to 30 years .

“What happened was that the rules for non-EU recruitment were tightened because we had an EU workforce prior to Brexit.

“The rules were subsequently relaxed because as a result of Brexit and the pandemic we lost a large pool of our workforce.

“Throughout recruitment has always focused on the domestic workforce but our working population is decreasing relative to the growing demands of our ageing population.

“This is making a nonsense of the current rules. If we want to recruit somebody from overseas, we already have to demonstrate that we have tried our best and exhausted the domestic pool of local people and in-country overseas staff.

“We only recruit overseas staff when we have to. It’s a lot more expensive to hire people from overseas so we only recruit internationally when there is no other option.

“The language in calling them unskilled is disgraceful and an insult to our existing workforce when we have been working so hard to professionalise the sector and to raise the esteem of our fantastic staff.

“This unwelcoming approach is going to make our current overseas staff feel incredibly uncomfortable.

“Without international recruitment, it’s going to be impossible to plug the gaps today and going forward the situation is going to get worse.

“Recruiting international workers for the social care sector and the NHS are going to be essential if we are going to deliver these vital services.

“We always try and recruit locally first, then we look at the overseas pool of people who are already here and only then will we look to recruit from overseas.”

Community

Travel advice issued for Pembrokeshire’s Long Course Weekend

Published

22 hours ago

June 24, 2025

Luke Sinclair

Motorists and bus passengers across south Pembrokeshire are being advised to prepare for a series of road closures and transport changes as the Long Course Weekend returns to the region this weekend.

The popular endurance event, which draws thousands of athletes and spectators each year, will bring temporary disruptions to routes in and around Tenby on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th June as competitors take part in the Wales Sportive and Wales Marathon.

Saturday 28th June – Wales Sportive

On Saturday, the Wales Sportive cycle event will see several roads in the wider Tenby area closed or converted to one-way systems to ensure participant safety. While the A40, A477, and the A478 Narberth to Kilgetty routes remain unaffected and fully open, other roads will be subject to closures and diversions throughout the day.

Sunday 29th June – Wales Marathon

Further closures will be in place on Sunday during the Wales Marathon, affecting routes between Tenby and Pembroke. These will operate on a rolling basis between 9.30am and 4pm, with the aim of minimising disruption while maintaining safety for runners and spectators.

Up-to-date information on all road closures can be found on the event’s official website:
https://community.lcwwales.com/road-closures

Special arrangements for carers and emergency access

Care professionals requiring access to clients in affected areas can obtain vehicle passes through their care organisation managers. More details are available at:
https://community.lcwwales.com/road…/carers-information

In case of emergencies during the event, organisers can be contacted directly on 01437 765777.

Public transport disruptions

Local bus services will also be impacted by the weekend’s events, with changes in place on both Saturday and Sunday.

Friday 27th June

All services will operate as normal.

Saturday 28th June

351 (Tenby-Kilgetty-Amroth-Pendine) – No service
381 (Haverfordwest-Narberth-Kilgetty-Saundersfoot-Tenby) – No service
Tenby Coaster (Tenby-Saundersfoot) – No service
349 (Haverfordwest-Neyland-Pembroke Dock-Pembroke-Tenby) – Will not serve Pembroke to Tenby until after 1pm
356 (Milford Haven-Neyland-Pembroke Dock-Pembroke-Monkton) – No service to Pembroke Commons or Monkton until after 1pm
387/388 (Coastal Cruiser) – Service will not operate until after 11am

Sunday 29th June

387/388 (Coastal Cruiser) – No service
Tenby Coaster (Tenby-Saundersfoot) – Will operate via the A4218 (Broadwell Hayes) instead of Marsh Road and Heywood Lane

Residents and visitors are encouraged to plan their journeys in advance and allow extra time for travel where necessary.

Community

Landmarc raises the flag at Castlemartin to mark the start of Armed Forces Week

Published

2 days ago

June 23, 2025

Tom Sinclair

TO CELEBRATE Armed Forces Week 2025, Landmarc Support Services (Landmarc), together with the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), is raising the Armed Forces Day flag at Castlemartin Training Area in Pembrokeshire, demonstrating their appreciation and support for service personnel.

The raising of the flag takes place each year at Defence Training Estate (DTE) sites across the UK and is witnessed by both Armed Forces personnel and civilians. This year, Landmarc and DIO are extending a special thank you to full-time serving and reservist troops, Cadet Force Adult Volunteers, veterans and their families, by proudly flying the official Armed Forces Day flag at military training establishments across the nation.

Working in partnership with DIO, Landmarc provides the support services that enable the Armed Forces to live, work, and train on the UK Defence Training Estate. As part of this ongoing commitment, Landmarc is extending its guaranteed interview scheme to military spouses, civil partners and long-term cohabiting partners who meet the basic role criteria to ensure fair treatment throughout the recruitment process.

The scheme reinforces Landmarc’s pledge to the Armed Forces Covenant, which was re-signed in 2024 following the company’s achievement of the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Gold Award.

Mark Neill, Managing Director at Landmarc, said: “Having supported the Armed Forces for more than two decades, we’re proud that over 25 per cent of our team comes from a military background. Expanding our guaranteed interview scheme to military spouses and partners is another important step in recognising the loyalty and service these individuals contribute to our country, while also reinforcing our ongoing commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant.

“As a veteran myself, I know first-hand how important Armed Forces Week is for improving morale across our military communities, and we are proud to show our support during this special week.”

Brigadier Hatcher, DIO’s Head of Overseas and Training Region added: “Armed Forces Week is an opportunity to show our appreciation for the men and women of the Armed Forces community, providing a welcome morale boost to serving personnel, veterans, and their families.

“It’s fantastic to see the public, businesses, and fellow service members come together in support. Alongside our colleagues at Landmarc, we are proud to raise the flag at sites across the country to honour their contribution.

Community

Scam email targeting Pembrokeshire residents claims unpaid council tax

Published

2 days ago

June 23, 2025

Tom Sinclair

PEMBROKESHIRE residents are being warned to stay alert after reports of a scam email falsely claiming to be from the local authority.

The email, which carries the subject line “We’re writing to you about what seems to be an unprocessed council tax payment,” has been received by a number of residents in recent days.

It goes on to claim that the recipient has an outstanding balance on their Council Tax account and invites them to click a link to “check” the details. The message is signed off by a so-called “Local Taxation Authority”.

Pembrokeshire County Council has confirmed that the email is fraudulent and was not sent by the council.

“All genuine emails from Pembrokeshire County Council will come from an address ending in @pembrokeshire.gov.uk,” a spokesperson said. “We urge residents not to click on any links, open attachments, or provide any personal or financial information if they are unsure about an email’s authenticity.”

The council is advising anyone who receives the scam email to forward it to the National Cyber Security Centre at [email protected] for investigation.

The local authority reminded residents to always check the sender’s email address and contact the council directly through official channels if they have any concerns about council tax or other communications.